Chapter 1: Morning
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He sat with a perfectly erect back, sipping lightly at his tea. It was black. No sugar, no cream, no honey. Just black. There were two water crackers beside him placed neatly on a china saucer. He did not eat them. They were just decorations. He casually turned the page in his newspaper which had been folded into a rectangle early this morning, all the corners artfully pressed, and placed in front of him at breakfast. She sat at the other end, finishing her tea, and examining the threads in the tablecloth. Her tea was a creamy brown and filled with sugar. She had nibbled politely on one of her crackers. They did not exchange any words.
When he finished his reading, he would rise, nod his head at her, leave, and only then was she allowed to stand and exit after. He would stand by the door, have his outer robes placed upon his shoulders by elves and he would leave, not even telling her he was or wishing her a nice day. Sometimes, if it was payday, he would ask her how her day had been.
"How was your day?" he would ask, in a completely uninterested tone.
"Wonderful, dear, and yours?" she would respond, attentive and excited to hear his reply.
"Good." he would say, and the conversation would end.
She sometimes imagined him saying something different, or asking other questions. Then she would remember herself and that she must never ask more from her husband than the basic necessities of life. Food, shelter, and nice things to wear.
A house elf would then escort her to the outside where she would watch the gardeners trim the hedges, reshape the ficus whose form changed with the seasons. In spring, it was simply Mr. Malfoy. In summer, it was Mr. Malfoy with a suit. In fall, it was Mr. Malfoy with a wand. In winter, it was Mr. Malfoy with a hat. They carefully picked fruit from its proper trees and clean up the fallen. They did all their work daily, as the Malfoy property was quite large in its expanse, and without the use of magic. They were muggles, after all. She would turn away when the gardeners would smile in the presence of the house elf. But sometimes, when the elf was distracted, she would smile back.
While he was gone, she would walk slowly around the house and change her outfit, perhaps have her hair redone, or sometimes write pretend letters from her husband to herself. In her letters, he actually loved her.